COUNT OF HAEEMS ON LUKANIN. 323 



ARDIGUEN. 



The harems on Ardiguen were visited at 5 o'clock to-day. A heavy wind, with 

 driving fog, was blowing across the Reef. With the exception of the harems on the 

 flat the seals were protected from its effects. The following is the count of the harems : 

 A, 4; B, 6; 0, 25; D, 14; E, 3; F, 17; Y, 0; X, 4. 



The cow with the peculiarly marked neck is gone. This is the first time she has 

 been missed since the 13th, when she had evidently just arrived. A wet cow is seen 

 to land and make her way up the slide taking her place in C. She calls and is 

 plainly hunting for her pup. 



For the 73 cows now visible in the tj^ical harems there are 192 pups. Of course 

 they may come up from the harems below, and yet these show a fair percentage of 

 pups.' 



MK. LUCAS'S NOTES ON LUKANIN. 



A count of the cows in 59 harems on Lukanin gave a total of 848 cows, an 

 average of 14.3 to a harem. For the rest of the rookery only harems could be 

 counted. Eighty-eight additional harems were found. Estimating these on the 

 basis of those counted, they would represent 1,167 cows, or for the entire rookery 

 2,015. But an unusual number of cows are coming and going, and it is evident that 

 the population of the rookery is breaking up, though the original harems are still 

 clearly marked by the presence of the bulls. The average of Kitovi rookery, which 

 Lukanin resembles in many respects, is therefore a safer one to apply, and this would 

 give a total of 2,543 cows for the 147 harems of Lukanin. 



Five dead pups were seen on Lukanin, one with placenta attached; all probably 

 trampled while young. Saw a few fresh placentas lying about, and two or three newly 

 born pups. Two pups were bitten, probably by cows. A pup was seen born. Its 

 mother was a silvery gray cow. Silver-gray cows are young; adult cows are brownish. 

 Pups podding and nursing. A wet cow hunts for her pup and finds it, but makes it 

 wait until she is dry before she lets it nurse. Cows coming and going in spite of 

 strong surf. The customary number of idle and half bulls back of rookery. Harems 

 seem to be disintegrating. 



Nine harems were counted as follows: 18, 10, 11, 33, 20, 13, 23, 13, 11; a total of 

 151 cows in an-area of about 102 by 80 feet. This would give space of 27 J feet to 

 each animal, including pups. This is a fairly dense patch of harems, not nearly so 

 dense as the massed areas, but above the average of the rocky ground. 



A lone cow is teasing a young half bull in the surf. One bull seen with injured 

 jaw, one front canine broken and bent forward. Females crane their necks and look 

 at you with sleepy curiosity. Seals are not much alarmed at man. They soon lose 

 their sense of fear when you have passed. 



The drives do not run close to any rookery and do not alarm the harems. Killable 

 seals stay away from the rookeries on their special hauling grounds. 



A big bull copulating occupies four minutes. Another cow clings to him 

 admiringly. The bull growls a good deal, and keeps his mouth open nearly all the 



1 Later observations showed that at no time -were more than half of the cows out atone time, and 

 at this date in the breeding season the numbei present was considerably less than half, as shown by 

 the investigations of 1897. 



